Wire-fence-building apparatus



(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 1.

J. A. HOOTON & G. L. WIARD. WIRE FENCE BUILDING APPARATUS.

.974. Patented Sept. 4, 1888.

K r 1v WITNESES:

an. D. C.

N. PETERS. P om-Lva (No Model.)

2 Sheets-Sheet 2. J. A. HOOTON & G. L. WIARD.

WIRE FENCE BUILDING APPARATUS.

No. 388,974. Patented Sept. 4, 1888.

INVENTOE:

WITNESSES: fim' ATTORNEYS.

NITED *rnrns Parent Darren.

JDHN A. HOOTON AND GILBERT L. VVIARD, OF CLIFTON, NEBRASKA.

WI RE-F ENCE-BUILDING APPARATUS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 388,974, datedSeptember t, 1888.

Application filed November 1, 1887. Serial No. 253,964. (No model.)

To a'ZZ whom. it may concern.-

Be itknown that we, J OHN A. Hooron and GILBERT L. W'rnnn, of Clifton,in the county of Holt and State of Nebraska, have invented new anduseful Improvements in VVire-Fence Building Apparatus, of which thefollowing is a full, clear, and exact description.

Our invention relates to an apparatus for building wire fences by theaid of a wire-twisting machine of any approved construction, which soonres the pickets between the stretched-wire stringers of the fence.

The invention has for its object to provide a simple,incxpensive, andeffective spool-rack and connected tension devices, by which the wiresmay be held and fed in pairs to the twisting device and maintained atuniform tension to assure proper weaving in of the pickets,and allowingthe work to be accomplished with economy of time and labor.

The invention consists in certain novel features of construction andcombinations of parts of the fence-building apparatus, all ashereinafter described and claimed.

Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part ofthis specification, in which similar letters of reference indicatecorresponding parts in all the figures.

Figure 1 is a side elevation illustrating the building of a wire fenceby the aid of our in1- proved apparatus. Fig. 2 is a plan view of thewire-spool rack, partly broken away and in section, and one of thewire-tension de vices. Fig. 3 is an enlarged plan view of the tensiondevice and the two strands of fencewire thereon, and Fig. 4 isaperspective View of the tension device and fence-wires and the twospools which deliver the wires to the tension.

Our improvements relate particularly to the rack which carries thespools from which the fence-wires run to tension devices of peculiar andnovel coustruction,as hereinafter fully explained.

The spool -rack A is made with a main frame, 13, consisting, preferably,of three bars, I) b I), connected to a sill, b, and a head or topcross-bar, Z), and a series of braces consisting of one pair of bars,0O, which are pivotally connected to the opposite sides of the rack-frameB at or near its top and by means of staples c 0, and a pair of bracesconsisting of bars D D, which are pivotally connected. at cl with thecenter bar,b,of the frame B, and at their free ends are adapted to enternotches d (2, made near the lower ends of the respective brace-bars O O.The cross bar or sill I)" of the rack-frame is provided with a series ofheavy pins, Envhich, together with the lower ends of the brace-bars G 0,enter the ground. The construction of the rack causes it to be plantedall the more firmly on and in the ground as the strain of the fencewireson it increases, and whereby when the apparatus is once set up and inuse no attention need be given to the rack, as it' anchors itself firmlyto the earth, and thereby promotes a saving of labor and consequenteconomy in building the fence. WVhen the rack is out of use, it may befolded with the braces G D, flat or nearly so, onto the frame 13 foreconomy of space during transportation or storage.

A series of shafts, F, are journaled in suitable boxes on the rack-frameB, preferably five shafts, and on each shaft are mounted two spools, GG, from which'two strands of wire pass to a tension device, I, presentlydescribed, and thence to a wire-twisting machine, J, which may have anypreferred construction, and simultaneously twists the pairs of wirestrands leading from the two spools on each shaft between and around thepickets K and the posts L in the line of the fence in a wellknownmanner. The fenceposts L are stayed properly by braces Z, as shown inFig. 1 of the drawings. Each spool-shaft F has a crank, f, fixed orapplied to it for taking up the slack of the fence-wires when they arefirst stretched along the fence-posts preparatory to weaving the picketsinto the fence by the twister.

The tension device I, which is an important feature of our invention, weparticularly describe as follows: The main part of the tension device isa spirally-twisted rod, M, made substantially like the body of an angeror boringbit, and preferably having its helical twists formed like thethreads of a doublethreaded screw, the grooves or spaces in m of the twothreads alternating along the rod M to allow one of the two wires H H,leading from the two spools G G, to be passed into each of the spaces orgrooves m m of the rod, after being first passed into or through loopstoo or eyes n n at opposite ends of a wire converging bar or rod, N,which is placed behind the downwardly-bent end m of the tension-rod M,and beneath a screw or rod, P, which is fixed to the center bar, I), ofthe frame B, and has an eye, 1), through which the end an of the rod Mpasses. From the wire retaining or guiding bar N the two wires H H passforward to enter their separate spiral grooves in m in the tension-rodM, and a staple, O, which is fitted tightly to the rod M,serves as awirecast-off device to throw the two wires out of the spiral grooves ofthe tension-rod when they shall have been turned around this red asufficient number of times to give the required tension to the wires asthey pay out from the spools G to the twister J. The wires H H may bereadily slipped into the loops or eyes at n of the guide N. Should thetension-rod M have an eye engaging a bent or headed hook or bar attachedto the rack-frame, the guide will lie behind the bend or head of saidhook, as will readily be understood.

The operation of the aparatus is as follows: The spool-rack A will beset up at proper place a convenient distance from the first post of thefence, and the wires H will be strung along the line of fence-posts L,and will be secured to the first post after having been first passedthrough the rotary heads j of the twister J; or, if preferred, the rackmay be mounted on a wheeled truck anda wagon, and when the wires aresecured to the end post and strung through the twister the entire rackmay be moved off along the line of the fence to at once pay out from therack-reels all the wires used in the fence and without crossing ortwisting them. WVhen the spool-rack is put in place, the spool-shaftsand spools will be turned by the cranks f to take up the slack of thewires, and the two wires which lead from the two spools on each shaftwill then be caught separately into the spiral grooves m m at the backend of the tension-rod M, and the staple 0, having been adjusted on therod at the proper place to allow any desired number of twists of thewires H H on the rod M, the rod will be turned to twist the wires on itup to the cast-off device or staple O, which holds them out of theforward spiral grooves of the tension-rod, and the bent-back end m ofthe rod will then be slipped into the eye p of the retaining device 1?to prevent recoil or back-turning of the rod, and after the wire guide Nis laid against and behind the end at? of the rod M, so that it cannotbe drawn forward by the pull on the wires H H, the latter will beslipped into the eyes or loops n n of the guide N, and when all thepairs of wires H H have been so adjusted with their tension devices foreach double strand of wire used, the weaving-in of the pickets may beproceeded with. As each picketK is wedged to place against the lasttwisted portions of the fence-wire strands, the twisterJ will beoperated to twist the pairs of wires around the picket, and this willdraw the wires H from the spools G and through the spiral grooves of thetension-device rods M. which by friction of the wires on them willmaintain all the double strands of wires used ata uniform tension, sothat the pickets shall be held with uniform grip by each twisted doublestrand of wire; hence the strains to which the fence may be subjectedwill be borne alike by all the strands, thus promoting the durability ofthe fence. The tension on the double strands of wiresH H may beincreased or decreased at will by giving a greater or less number ofturns to the tension-rods M around and along which the wires pass.

It is obvious that tension-rods M having a Y single thread providing butone helical groove around them into andalong which both wires H H of apair are passed may be used, and our invention embraces this feature;but by providing a double thread or two helical grooves along thetension-rods, one for each wire of a pair of wires, as above explained,each of the separate wires will be put under tension separately andindependently of friction one on the other,which gives evidentadvantages in assuring a uniform twist of both the wires on each otherbetween the pickets, and therefore promotes durability of the entirefence.

Having thus described our invention, we claim as new and desire tosecure by Letters Patent- 1. In a wire-fence-building apparatus, thewire-spool rack A, constructed with a frame, B, on which the spools havebearings, braces O O, pivoted to the head of the frame, and braces D D,held to the lower portion of the frame and entering notches d in thebraces O, substantially as herein set forth.

2. In a wire-fence-building apparatus, the wire-spool rack A,constructed with a frame, B, on which the spools have bearings andprovided with lower teeth, E, entering the ground, braces O G, pivotedto the head of the frame, and braces D D, held to the lower portion ofthe frame and entering notches d in the braces O, substantially asherein set forth.

3. A wire-fence-building apparatus comprising aspool-rack, twowire-spools j ournaled thereon, and a tension device receiving a wirefrom each of the spools and consisting of a spirally-grooved rod aroundwhich the wires are turned and passed thence to a twisting device, astaple or wire castingpfi device fitted at the forward part of thetension-rod, and a retainer holding the back end of the tensionrod andpreventing its turning, substantially as herein set forth.

4. A wire-fence-building apparatus comprising a spool-rack,twowire-spools journaled thereon, and a tension device receiving a wirefrom each of the spools and consisting of adouble-threaded rod havingtwo spiral grooves, each groove receiving one of the wires and passingit to a twisting device, a staple or wire.

casting-off device fitted at the forward partof the tensionrod, and aretainer holding the IIO back end of the tension-rod and preventing itsturning, substantially as herein set forth.

5. A wire-feneebuilding machine co1npris ing a spool-rack, twowire-spools journaled thereon, a tension device receiving said wiresfrom the spools and consisting of a spirallygrooved rod around which thewires are turned and passed thence to atwisting device, a staple or wirecastingoff device fitted at the forward part of the tension-rod, aretainer holding the back end of the tension-rod and preventing itsturning, and a guide placed on the wires between the spools and thetension device, substantially as herein set forth.

6. In a wirefence-building apparatus, the combination, with aspool-rack, of a shaft, F,

two spools, G G, thereon carrying wires H H, a tensiondeviee comprisinga spirally-grooved rod, M, around and along which the wires are passed,a staple, O, casting ofif the wires at 20 the spools and the tensiondevice, substantially 25 as described, for the purposes set forth.

JOHN A. HOOTON. GILBERT L. WIARD.

Witnesses:

A. O. CROSSMAN, JOHN FORREST.

